Book Lovers' Paradise at the Frankfurt Book Fair

As a book lover and complete bookworm since I first began to read, I'd so often heard of and read about the Frankfurt Book Fair that when I found myself living less than two hours south of Frankfurt, a visit to the annual trade fair went straight to the top of my list of must-dos.

The Frankfurt Book Fair (or Frankfurter Buchmesse in German: I love that the German word for trade fair, Messe, sounds like what my desk looks like!) is an annual event held in the middle of October. It spans nearly a week and the final two days are usually a Saturday and Sunday when the fair is opened up to the general public. While the big-wigs from the book industry spend the week launching new titles and negotiating big deals (especially international rights), for the layman like me it all happens on the weekend, when the public can wander through all the halls, see writers speaking and debating and get your hands on some of the newest books before they even hit the shelves.

When I entered the Book Fair - held at Frankfurt's largest conference center, which is well served whether you arrive by train or car - I was instantly confused. The fair is arranged into various halls, included German fiction, foreign fiction, non-fiction, comics, travel books, text books and so on. Deciding where to go first was a big decision for me, but as I ended up spending most of the day there I was able to see everything I wanted to in the end.

My personal preference was to check the Australian publishers first, since I was really out of touch with what books were up to back in my homeland. I picked up catalogs galore to read in leisure at home, and saw some new novels brought up by my favorite Australian authors. Unfortunately (or perhaps fortunately for my bank balance), only a few stands offered books for sale, so I filled my bags with brochures and catalogs rather than anything too expensive. Wandering through the travel books section was also enlightening, as I could get a preview of the newest editions to my favorite guide books and see what the new "in" destinations were.

But my big tip is to check the cookery books section, even if you've never read a recipe in your life. The publishers there have all sorts of tricks to get you to look at their books, the best one being giving away free food samples from relevant recipes. I enjoyed several slices of delicious pizza and a cupcake for dessert! But if you have a few more scruples than me, there are plenty of snacks available for purchase inside the enormous convention center.

At the end of the day, my head was swimming with words and books, but I was really pleased to have been able to see the Frankfurt Book Fair. It is a must-visit for any book lover - it's the largest one in the world, so it really is the ultimate book lover's destination.